Women Heads of State and Government, which included Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, met Tuesday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to discuss global issues as part of the newly created UNGA Platform of Women Leaders.

According to a statement released by the United Nations, the event was convened under the theme of “Transformative Solutions by Women Leaders to Today’s Interlinked Challenges”.

The discussions at the inaugural summit on Tuesday (Wednesday Samoa Time) highlighted that women’s full and effective political participation and decision-making are crucial to addressing global priorities effectively, decisively and inclusively.

Besides Prime Minister Fiame, also in attendance was President Katalin Novák of Hungary, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh, Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir of Iceland, and Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja of Uganda, as well as Prime Minister Evelyn Wever-Croes of Aruba and Prime Minister Silveria E. Jacobs of St. Maarten together with the former Prime Minister Helen Clark of New Zealand.

The event was hosted by the Office of the President of the General Assembly and UN Women, in cooperation with the Council of Women World Leaders (CWWL).

Csaba Kőrösi, President of the 77th session of the General Assembly, pointed out the transformative power of women leadership and the positive impact it can have.

“Women leadership is transformative. The women leaders with us today are living proof of this fact. Inclusive governance can result in policies that create positive change over the long term,” said Mr. Kőrösi.

“By integrating the views of diverse women – especially at the highest levels – Governments can effectively tailor and target solutions to those most in need.”

Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women, talked about the effects of women leadership in health, education, childcare and violence against women.

“When more women lead in political and public life, everyone benefits, especially in crises. A new generation of girls see a possible future for themselves,” said Ms. Bahous.

“Health, education, childcare, and violence against women receive greater attention and better solutions. 

“We must find every possible way to amplify the assets women leaders bring. This Platform is an opportunity to do just that.”

Recent global crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, climate, and conflicts, have shown the positive difference women’s leadership and decision-making can make in executive positions, parliaments, and public administration. 

For example, the UNDP-UN Women COVID-19 Global Gender Response Tracker shows that governments with higher women’s representation in parliaments adopted a higher number of gender-sensitive policy measures in response to COVID-19, including policies aimed directly at strengthening women’s economic security.

Out of the 193 Member States of the United Nations, only 28 women serve as elected Heads of State or Government. Whilst progress has been made in many countries, the global proportion of women in other levels of political office worldwide still has far to go: 21 per cent of the world’s ministers, 26 per cent of national parliamentarians, and 34 per cent of elected seats of local government. According to a new UN report, at the current pace of progress, equal representation in parliament will not be achieved until 2062.

The UNGA Global Platform of Women Leaders is a result of a meeting on 21 September 2021, between women Heads of State and Government and Abdulla Shahid, the President of the 76th session of the General Assembly.

Katrín Jakobsdóttir, Prime Minister of the Republic of Iceland and Chair of the Council of Women World Leaders, said it is her strong belief that the world needs more women and diverse leaders representing people from all backgrounds and life experiences.